1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus, an image recording method and an image recording program. More particularly, the present invention relates to an image recording apparatus, an image recording method and an image recording program for assisting an observer who observes an observed person.
2. Related Art
A filing system for medical images has been proposed which records thereon an image of a patient (i.e. an observed person) which is captured when an observer diagnoses the patient, in association with patient information (information which identifies the patient and indicates the status of the patient), test information (a date, a time and a location where a test is conducted), and test result information (a result of the diagnosis, findings and the like) (see Patent Document 1, for example). According to such a filing system, the patient information and the like is used as a search key to search for the image of the observed person. In addition, a medical image diagnosis apparatus has been proposed (see Patent Document 2, for example). According to the invention disclosed in Patent Document 2, when an image of an observed person is being captured and an examining doctor judges that the image being captured is necessary for making a diagnosis (key image), the image is recorded on a memory in association with information indicating that the image is a key image and image-capturing information (direction in which the image is captured and the like) by the examining doctor who manipulates a switch of the diagnosis apparatus. Here, when a diagnosis is made, the key image is displayed.
[Patent Document 1] Unexamined Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-73615
[Patent Document 2] Unexamined Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-109509
According to the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1, however, the image captured can not be maintained in association with a search key which can identify a time at which the observer pays attention to a particular area of the observed person while the observer observes the observed person. According to the invention disclosed in Patent Document 2, an image can be captured only when a person who makes a diagnosis of an observed person looks at the observed person. However, an image of the observed person which may be captured while the person who makes a diagnosis does not look at the observed person is also useful in making a diagnosis. The invention disclosed in Patent Document 2 can not capture an image of the observed person while the person who makes a diagnosis does not look at the observed person.
In view of the above, an advantage of some embodiments of the present invention is to provide an image recording apparatus, an image recording method and an image recording program which can solve the above-mentioned problems. This advantage is achieved by combining the features recited in the independent claims. The dependent claims define further effective specific example of the present invention.